Grants pave the way for more preschool options for NSW country kids

The New South Wales Government yesterday announced $8.3 million in grants to expand and establish new preschool services in regional areas of the State, with the aim of making early learning more accessible. 

NSW Minister for Education and Early Childhood Learning Sarah Mitchell said the additional funding, which falls under the existing Capital Works Grants program, will increase the number of places available in community preschools, providing families with more opportunities for early childhood education.

Ms Mitchell, who hails from the NSW country town of Gunnedah, said all families deserve options for early learning which is affordable, accessible and of high quality. 

“As a Government, it is important we do what we can to support our regional communities that have endured a tough few years,” she said. 

The Capital Works program began in 2013, with the NSW Government allocating a total of  $62.1 million since 2018 to increase community preschool places in areas of high demand since that time. 

Grant funding can be used by successful applicants to support a variety of service improvements, including opening new centres, extending and renovating existing sites and in some cases, investing in new vehicles to support the continuation of mobile preschool services, Ms Mitchell said.

Indicating the range of support offered by the Grants, Ms Mitchell noted “some exciting projects” taking place thanks to the Capital Works Grants 2019 round, including two new vehicles for Gwydir Mobile Children’s Service, $1.5 million for a new preschool at Cootamundra and $350,000 for a significant extension of Leeton Preschool, 

For more information about the Capital Works Grants program, please see here.